17 year old Nissan Micra driving through Europe

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K16 was a cheaply produced and not durable engine for the time, still it's able to do 230k miles...<snip>

Yes but we were talking about flooring a cold engine, and this usually damages the piston rings and pins, while the seals get worn out due to age and mileage. (as you know)

I've really got no inclination to get into lots of anecdotal stuff, and a good explanation of how and why product lifespan is determined would be a sizeable essay. Some brief points:
- Every vehicle will have some kind of design lifespan, which most vehicles should meet without major failures
- Extending that lifespan beyond a certain point only really benefits the person who owns it at the point it would otherwise fail. However, it does cost more and the person who has to pay is the initial purchaser, and they are rarely the same person. As an example, car A has a lifespan of 10 years and costs £10k. Car B is otherwise identical but has a lifespan of 15 years and costs £15k. Person C walks into the showroom, looking to buy a car. They want to change it in 3 years, so that additional life doesn't give them any benefit, but does cost them an extra £5k. Which car are they going to choose? (Bear in mind any increase in residual value will almost always be offset by the greater absolute depreciation).
- Few cars are sent to the scrapheap because parts aren't available. If they're not destroyed in an accident, it's because the low residual value of the car means it's not worth spending much money on keeping it running. One or two relatively minor issues could write it off. (I'm currently deciding whether to scrap a 15 year old Peugeot which starts and stops fine. It's got a couple of small problems which need fixing for the MOT but it's virtually worthless). Electronics can be a particular issue, but they do have a lot of benefits which are typically overlooked.
- Sometimes manufacturers do get it wrong. They can't road test 100k vehicles for 10 years to iron out every problem, so sometimes parts won't meet their design life. That's unfortunate but it happens. It's also worth remembering that there are lots of manufacturers behind the brand - in your Golf example, none of those parts will have been made by VW!

I do understand why people get frustrated with 'cheap' design. I work on all my own vehicles and sometimes it does go a bit too far. Having been on the design engineering side though, the reasons do go beyond "more profit!!!". There are also plenty of people with completely unrealistic expectations, especially online!

I realise that's not a great explanation and I could write pages more, but I don't have the time. However the general trend in reliability is definitely upwards and has been for a long time.

Reply 41

PTMalewski

I understand and agree with most points that you've made, and I understand that higher complexity must cause more problems.
Shorter lifespan, and less spare parts being produced allow to offer lower prices for a car that meets expectations of most clients.
However sometimes the pursuit for profit and customer's naivety althogether go to far.
I name pursuit for profit, as cars with very similar specs, and quipment are offered at very different prices, which does not seem to be connected with reliability or lifespan.

Original post by CurlyBen

- Sometimes manufacturers do get it wrong. They can't road test 100k vehicles for 10 years to iron out every problem, so sometimes parts won't meet their design life. That's unfortunate but it happens. It's also worth remembering that there are lots of manufacturers behind the brand - in your Golf example, none of those parts will have been made by VW!

People's mentality has changed, therefore it is impossible this days to test a car for years, and keep it in offer for a decade, like it used to bepossible in case of Mercedes C107 for example, when an expensive car were purchased to be used for long periods of time.
. However, it seems that manufacturers in their pursuit for profit, sometimes go too far. I don't agree with opinion that VW, or another maker is not responsible for parts in their vehicles, just because they didn't make them. They are responsible for them, as ordered these parts to be sold to them at some particular price and meet particular specifications. And if something that simple and well tested like a power window, or fuel pump fails way sooner than it supposed to, it clearly means that the design was faulty, production too cheap, or quality controll lacking.

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 42

Doones

This is all great, but doesn't really help the OP getting to the Alps... :wink:

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Reply 43

mcgreevy1993

Entering life back to this thread to let everyone know that the Micra is driving through Europe - but not to the alps!

We have decided to take it through the north & then possibly follow the cost up the Netherlands from France or just do the North coast of France. Our ferry leaves on the 20th of March.

I've got the car booked in for a fan belt change - as I stated earlier it had seen better days
and an oil flush & health check on 6th.

Can anyone think of anything else it needs..expect possibly tyres as I know limit is different over there?

Thanks!

Reply 44

username2028267